This is not exactly a thriller or horror trailer, though it certainly has an aspect of mystery which is what I would like my trailer to rely heavily on - I particularly liked the classic style of it and the way it was edited, for example the fact that it is mainly comprised of long shots that have an ominous feel to them such as the one that zooms in on Joaquin Phoenix's face as he walks. I also liked the fact that it was edited to leave a lot of ambiguities and unanswered questions - for example, there is a brief shot of Philip Seymour Hoffman about to address the camera about something unclear to the viewer, and most of the dialogue is very ambiguous e.g. 'you've wandered from the true path' and 'you seem to inspire something in him'. I would certainly borrow from this trailer in this aspect, as mystery is which makes most trailers particularly thrilling. The look and feel of the trailer is something I particularly liked as well - having a similar look to this, as well as similar music, is something I may consider.
2: No Country For Old Men (2007)
In some ways this trailer is very similar to the trailer for The Master - it is never particularly scary or suspenseful, mainly mysterious - however, this is a style that, with the right footage, can be particularly gripping. This trailer, for example, builds up to the action but never actually shows it, leaving it to the imagination of the audience. Like many trailers, to do this it often cuts to black before showing something, which is a convention that I would likely follow in my own film trailer. Avoiding showing the actual action and instead implying it also gives the trailer as a whole a particularly suspenseful paces, as there is a sustained build up with no actual relief.
3: The Cabin in the Woods (2012)
This trailer feels more like a proper horror film than the trailers of the other two films, which are more mystery and suspense thrillers. The film itself is something of a pastiche of many other modern horror films so the trailer as well as the film itself includes many horror conventions - for example, at the beginning the music suddenly stops playing which immediately changes the atmosphere and increases the suspense.
4: Moon (2009)
This is a psychological thriller trailer that I liked because it introduces the more thought provoking ideas of the story without giving away too much. Like No Country For Old Men, it suggests certain ideas without actually showing them on screen, though while No Country For Old Men suggests conflict and violence, this manages to cleverly suggest the idea of cloning that is introduced to the film without properly showing it. I particularly liked the way the clone was first introduced, which is done in a style traditional with some trailers. The music fades out and there is a dramatic silence when the clone is shown, but it cuts away from any further plot details to instead show the critical reception. I particularly liked the fact that the situation in question was set up to be something mundane, which made the reveal all the more shocking.
5: Prometheus (2012)
This is a trailer for a sci-fi action/horror film and the trailer is suitably thrilling thanks to many different devices used within it. The music is iconic, unique and intense, and uses dramatic sound as well as music itself to create tension - something which has become particularly common in modern trailers (other trailers that have become popular due to their use of sound include Inception). In the second half of the trailer, flashes of different dramatic camera shots are shown which adds suspense and intensity to the trailer as well, a technique that can quite easily be replicated and is also used in many different trailers, particularly horror and action trailers.
6: Drive (2011)
Like many trailers for action films, Drive manages to blend telling some of the story with demonstrating the action - most of the dialogue is done in voiceover while the action is shown playing out, something which happens in most action trailers now. Different music is used throughout the trailer which splits it in to different parts, a trailer making device that can be used to, for example, demonstrate different characters in the film or different aspects of the story. I particularly liked the use of classical music at the end of the trailer, as it demonstrates the arthouse aspects of the film and gives the audience more of an insight into what the film will feel like, rather than tell the entire story.
7: A History of Violence (2007)
Like some of the other trailers I have used such as Moon and The Cabin in the Woods, this trailer starts off in a mundane way, using titles to describe the quietness of the town the main characters live in as well as focusing on the everyday lives of the characters (one character is shown playing baseball, for example, while the main character works at a cafe). Like the other trailers, the change in tone and danger is signified by the music cutting out abruptly. This particular trailer also features actor names, demonstrating the ensemble cast.
8: Memento (2000)
My favourite aspect of this trailer is the way in which it cleverly presents the concept of anterograde amnesia the film and what it leads to within the story. For example, the opening of the trailer sees the main character explaining his condition to another man, and at the end of the trailer he does the exact same thing, eventually saying 'I've told you this before, haven't I?' The trailer also introduces characters under title cards such as 'friend' and 'lover', though the idea that the protagonist of the film cannot fully know them is introduced when they are re-introduced in the trailer as, for example, 'liar'.
